Friday, September 02, 2005

USS Whidbey Island to Help Relief Effort

Some help is on the way

Commander C.E. Pringle, USN

As part of the huge relief effort for the hurricane disaster, the Navy is sending an aircraft carrier, USS HARRY S. TRUMAN, and the USS WHIDBEY ISLAND, under the command of Commander C. E. Pringle, in support of that effort. Being as I live on Whidbey Island, a post on this ship seems to be in order.

This is from the Navy's website on the Whidbey Island. There's a number of pages of pictures and information there. Although the Whidbey Island is not one of the "high profile" ships like an aircraft carrier, it is a really handy asset to have in situations like these. These Navy folks work just as hard as everyone else, and they deserve a little time in the limelight too....

Excerpt from the Website:

USS Whidbey Island (LSD 41) conducts prompt, sustained combat operations at sea and worldwide in support of national policy. Designed, built, and manned to carry out "maneuver warfare" and "over-the-horizon" amphibious assaults as part of an amphibious task group, Whidbey Island can carry four landing craft air cushions (LCAC) in its floodable well and also serves as the primary control ship during an assault. The ship also provides a boat haven with docking, repair and fueling services for landing craft and boats, making the Whidbey Island ideally suited to support our Navy's foremost strike asset, the U.S. Marines.

Equally effective in peacetime as in wartime, the Whidbey Island carries out a variety of humanitarian missions, such as evacuations and disaster relief.

The Whidbey Island supports special warfare, fleet support operations (refueling other ships), non-combatant operations, ocean surveillance and electronic warfare via its primary missions of amphibious warfare, mobility, command and control and anti-air warfare.

The Whidbey Island's multitalented crew, embarked Marines and detachments, make the ship multi-mission capable. Representing almost every state in the union including Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Philippines, we feel privileged and proud to serve aboard the USS Whidbey Island.